My Macro Photography Kit for 2023
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- Опубликовано: 5 сен 2024
- Further info about the items in the order I talked about them (purchase links + my videos):
- Camera: Sony A7IV amzn.to/3YtfXkF • Why I Bought the SONY ...
- Main lens: Laowa 85mm bit.ly/mwlaowa85 • Laowa 85mm f/5.6 2x Ul...
- 5x lens: Laowa 25mm bit.ly/mwlaowa25 • Laowa 25mm f/2.8 2.5-5...
- Flash: Meike MK-320 amzn.to/3V82A6F • Meike MK-320 - Best Fl...
- Batteries: GP Photo Flash international.... • Best Flash Batteries f...
- Big wireless flash: Godox TT685 amzn.to/3W8abUb
- Globe diffuser: • Globe Diffuser for Mac...
- Primary diffuser: Pope Shield • Pope Shield Macro Phot... www.popeshield... WARNING: POTENTIALLY VERY LONG DELIVERY TIME!
- Secondary diffuser: DÖRR • DÖRR Macro Photography...
- Automated macro slider: Cognisys Stackshot • Macro Photography Focu... cognisys-inc.c...
- Magnification Filter: Raynox DCR-250 • Why Every Macro Photog... amzn.to/3G0ci6N
- Nose spray: Nasoferm www.apotea.se/...
How I make my videos
📹 I use this small gimbal video camera outdoors to film: amzn.to/3oZGLsr
🎹 I get my music from Epidemic Sound: bit.ly/mwepidemic
More regular content from me in these places
💌 newsletter: mwroll.com
🌄 instagram: / mwroll
🐦 twitter: / micaelwidell
🎖 patreon: / micaelwidell
🖼 nfts: foundation.app... / opensea.io/col...
💬 discord: bit.ly/widelld...
Many of the links above are affiliate links, which means that I earn a small commission if you buy something via the links - at no extra cost to you. I greatly appreciate when people use these links, as it is an important income stream to keep this channel alive. ❤️
Another important group of people that keeps this channel alive is my Patreon supporters. For $5 per month you can support my work on / micaelwidell and in return you get bonus content such as a monthly exclusive bonus video that only my Patreon supporters get access to.
Thank you for watching my videos. 🥰
Thanks for watching! Also find me in these places:
💌 newsletter: micaelwidell.com 🌄 instagram: instagram.com/mwroll
🎖 patreon: patreon.com/micaelwidell 🐦 twitter: twitter.com/micaelwidell
💬 discord: bit.ly/widelldiscord macro lens buying guide: lensguide.micaelwidell.com
OMG, the chemists world wide are getting a higher demand for nose sprays than usual, because of this video!
I’m sure you recommended the nose spray bottle before and I added one then. Works great. Good video, thanks.
Thanks! Nose spray is something new to me :) Let's prepare for the spring when life comes back to nature.
I did get an MK-320 originally, and it worked great for a few weeks, but then inexplicably died, would never trigger again no matter what I did. I ended up switching to a bigger Godox, but it works consistently.
I started with a godox 350 but i would get several black frames when shooting continuously. I bought the meike mk 320 and it has worked better for me for macro. The modeling light is another plus.
@@mdees88 ya, the reset time of the flash matters - to be able to flash more consecutively, you often need to turn down the power. it can also help to set the rate of your continuous burst to be slightly slower to allow the flash to charge the capacitor a bit longer between frames
Another nice gear roundup, glad you are going to try an Olympus camera.
As well as my Meike MK-320, I have recently purchased some Godox gear.
for the round ball diffuser I am going to try their ML-CD15 ball diffuser and it come with an attachment to fit popular flashes like their 685 and others of the same size.
Hopeing it works out as being silicone it will pack down easier than a hard one
your videos are really informative, thank you. i have been photographing everything possible and once I started macro, it has opened a new world for me. all of your tips and tricks are so great! I live in super sunny SW Florida, so the diffuser idea is a good one. even using a milk jug works!
Thanks for this video, it's exactly what I need right now.
Keep the videos coming Michael quality stuff thanks Mitch
Ha en trevlig jul och ett gott nytt år!
Nice rundown on the equipment and great timing. Thanks
Hi! Did you ever try focus stacking with Olympus ? M1 Mark II + 60mm f/2.8 macro is quite a cheap alternative and the results are mind blowing. You can set the parameters of stacking inside the camera and you will have a jpg file already processed . Nice video, by the way !
Not yet! I hope to get an Olympus camera for the upcoming summer of 2023 to finally try this :)
@@MicaelWidell Your work is amazing. I am sure any Olympus dealer will be more than glad to lend you the latest OM1 + 60mm f/2.8 macro.
@@nastasecatalin6532 is that a latest one?
Yes, OM1 is the latest pro camera from Olympus (better sensor and a lot of functions)
Nikon has the same feature at least in my Z9, it doesn’t automatically merge them but I want to edit the RAWs before stacking anyways.
I want to add about Meike MK-320.
I saw this flash in your video a year ago. Having bought the Canon R, I decided to buy it too, because it is the most compact solution.
It turned out that TTL does not work with Canon R. But on my previous Canon 80D camera it works.
Nevertheless, in manual mode on R, this flash gives a good result even with a standard diffuser cover (I also always use the dörr analog).
You have inspired me, I have a Laowa 100mm F/2.8 2x Ultra Macro APO Lens For my Nikon on the way, Macro photography is something I love. Thanks for the amazing content it’s fantastic and really easy to listen to and absorb.
Happy to hear that :)
Excellent video Micael! As always!
Hi Micael, I am new in your account, but I just see your professionally user system. Very interesting. I am Nikon user, also in the next time possible buy one mirroles Nikon system. For the moment used until the Nikon D800. In August last year, I bought PopeShield flash system to test. In this year I will be testing with the Laowa 100mm Ultra Apo Macro lens. Now I buy the Godox Flash V860 III N, that I used with the PopeShield and 100mm Laowa. Thanks for this video. Goodby from Switzerland..
Add the microfogger to your equipment and you have droplets and some mist too! 😊
I love the apple pencil stuck to your shelf, I always stick mine to my PC case xD
That's a nice video, thank you for the overview / guide. For me it was very interesting to see the complicated slider and I'm also a little bit surprised that you use a Sony camera for macro photography, as other camera brands have a built-in focus bracketing solution in their cameras where you don't need anything else - just a lens with AF. You use the MF Laowa lenses so it doesn't really matter, but I can still imagine more comfortable setup for indoor focus bracketing sessions. Have you been considering some alternatives? I personally don't understand why Sony was avoiding to include this feature in their camera bodies for so long.
When I ordered from Popeshield I had to wait a long time. I contacted them and they said they would resend. Finally I got my popeshield kit without screws and with the wrong filter thread. I contacted them again, they said they would send a new magnetic filter with the correct filter thread. After almost six months of waiting, I asked them when I will receive my delivery. They then sent it and it arrived within 2 weeks. Wrong filter thread again. I bought a step down ring and my own screws. Now I have 2 magnetic filters and simply have to use step rings to make them work.
Great video Micael!
i'm new to macro photography and your videos are very helpful. i'm currently using canon rp with canon rf 100mm 2.8L and neewer tt560 speedlite with a diffuser.
Nose spray! That's an amazing great idea! It might be airport hand luggage compatible. Thanks!
(I use the optical glass cleaner spray bottle before.)
Have you ever try glycerol instead of water for drops?
Danke!
Thank you
nice video but i have a question: i see most youtube photography channel showing off their camera bodys without lens OR cover on! my heart stops everytime i see this. just got a new R7 and even i am being extremely careful when swapping lenses (try avoid it as much as possible and not swap for fun. using a HEPA filter in the room/car and crank it to max for a minute to get every bit of dust out of the air, turn it off and THEN swap lens as fast as i can, ect ect...) even with all that i got a fair amount of black dots on my sensor i can see each time i point the cam into the sky.
what am i missing here? it feels like the sensor is just collecting dust like a magnet when i just look at the lens release button funny. 🤣🤬
how do you deal with dust when leaving the camera body open so long time like that? please enlighten me🤯
I just clean the sensor 1-2 times per year using the kit described in my 2024 version of this video. Check it out. Other than that I never change lenses outdoors, and when I do, I point the camera downwards. That’s about all you can do.
Thank you!!
☮️💟
Kul att ta del av vad du har i väskan och att du är svensk, lite ovanligt här på YT. Fotar också med Sony men a7r4 med ett 100mm Minolta A-mount. Det blir till att prenumerera och ta del av ditt innehåll.
Awesome video! Any thing new with your wildlife photography???👍👍👍
Haven’t done any wildlife in a while because weather has not been optimal and/or I didn’t have time when the weather was good. Soon hopefully :)
Thanks to your previous videos I bought and really like the super compact Laowa 85 and the Meike 320 BUT I had a great deal of trouble finding the flashes in country to fit my Canon cameras (everyone seems to have Sony versions but not Canon). I ended up buying two used (eBay) Meike 320 units and discovered they work well together with one on camera and one as slave. It did take me a while to figure out how to set them to work together since my flashes came without instructions (have to push two buttons at the same time to put it into settings mode). Now this video (overwriting and in the comments) tells me Meike are not reliable and mine that work well today may break tomorrow. I hope one or both still work when the flowers and insects return in Spring. Right now we only have frost and things indoors as subjects. What do you shoot in Sweden in December?
I shoot mostly raindrops when outdoors in the winter. Hoping to also shoot some snow crystals this winter.
Tack o GOD JUL
Meike MK320 - small, handy, sufficient for macro. But unfortunately, two MK320 lamps burned out. I don't know if I'm the only one with such bad luck, but I won't go back to meike. Everything was fine until the next shots made a loud bang and finally I felt a bad smell, everything inside burned. I won't buy a third one. I don't know what I was doing wrong, I had it set to 1/16 and used it normally
Man i wish we could get a lawa x5 for fuji xt5
RUclipsrs : Camera doesnt matter at all.
Also youtubers : buys Sony a1, or Canon 1DX or Nikon Z9
Micael what shelf do you use in your studio for your photo gears?)
Ikea Idåsen
Can you use the raynox and popeshield at the same time ?
Hy there, thank you for the great content again 😁 I love your channel, inspiring me. For your reccomendation I bought 7artisan 60mm for apsc camera and it was great, now I am looking for a full frame best budget lens, and would love the laowa 85mm. Mostly I take photo about mushrooms in the forest. What do you think, the 5.6 apperture is enough for that ? Thank you 🙂
Depends on your shooting style. For mushrooms, which are a bit bigger, I would probably buy the Laowa 90mm instead - f/2.8 can be useful sometimes. It costs roughly the same as the 85mm.
Apoteket har såna där "rese"sprayflaskor som jag brukar ha vatten i med mig när jag kör macro, perfekt för att få droppar och den fuktiga looken! :D
Great video . Did you ever use Adaptalux lightings ?
Not yet! But I will test them soon
Michael, those photos of Ants is amazing. Does you stack it?
These ant photos were taken freehand with no stacking. See me take them if you search my name and “ant photography” on RUclips
@@MicaelWidell thank you Michael.
дякую
I always appreciate these videos, thanks! I notice you take good pictures. I have the Sony 90mm macro, is the Laowa 85 better to switch, or is better to stick with the 90? Also, I noticed some new flashes from Sony. Is the Meike flash much better or are they about the same? Thanks Micael!
I would switch to one of the Laowa lenses, either the Laowa 90mm, 58mm or 85mm depending on your needs. Mainly because these lenses give you double the magnification, which I personally value a lot. But you could also buy a Raynox DCR-250 for $70 and put on your Sony lens, and get to 2x magnification that way. The Sony flashes are probably higher quality than the Meike, but I haven't tried them so I cannot say. The Meike is a lot cheaper though.
@MW Hello newbie here..Enjoying the channel. Macro seems a very exciting to me. I have seen other of your videos talking about the Laowa 100mm 2.8 (and you mentioned Thomas Shahan Who loves it) I was wondering why the Laowa 25mm 2.5x-5x wasn't the #1?.. Also I will be using an Eos T3i so I was wondering how the APS-C sensor , making it what a 150mm lens? how does the added focal length affect things? The last time I picked up a camera it was an SLR not a DSLR..I am trying to handle the learning curve. Thanks
The 25mm is a very special lens, as the minimum magnification is 2.5x, which is an extreme amount of magnification. You cannot use this lens for most things, only for extremely magnified images. That is why I would never recommend it as your first macro lens. The crop sensor doesn't do much difference in macro photography, except that image becomes even more magnified, since you are looking at a crop of the full frame image.
@@MicaelWidell Thank you kind sir..
Probably funny question - but could you measure "mounting" diameter of your dome diffuser? ;) I have exactly same Godox flash - it would make it much more easy to order one with already proven diameter :)
The diameter is just 0.5cm or so narrower than the width of the flash head. So I have to squeeze the opening of the dome for it to fit. Sorry I can’t measure exactly right now.
Ciao, great and very interesting video as always. What do you recommend using to merge your stacking shots?
My favorite is Helicon Focus. For small stacks I use Photoshop. See my playlist about focus stacking for videos on this.
What happened to the AK Diffuser? I understood in the comparison video, that it actually performed the best
The AK is great but I think the pope shield gives as nice diffusion with the bonus that it fits better in my bag.
Okay, got it
MeiKe MK 320 In my Nikon system they were a curse, they lived their own lives, I had to completely abandon them.
You didn't mention the AK Diffuser in your video, how satisfied are you with it? I am currently choosing a diffuser. Thank you
The AK is great but I personally prefer the Pope because it fits better in a bag without disassembly.
Would you recommend this Meike flash over the Godox TT350C? If so can you tell me why? Thanks!
Please see my latest video which compares these
What do u photograph in the winter? I live in sweden too...and i worry about taking out the laowa 100mm when it's like -10 or if it's snowing/raining and feel like im risking my gear...but maybe im just paranoid? I have the sony 12-24 f/4 and its weather sealed, but still managed to get mold in it...and i ruined the lens coating with a uv light trying to kill the mold....still really depressed over that...cuts deep to know your the one who ruined it.
can you recommend the Godox- Macro Ring Light MFR76 ? have you try the godox macro ring flash?
I never recommend anyone to get a Macro Ring Light. The photos from such flashes do not look good in my opinion. Use a regular flash instead - it is cheaper and you get a lot more beautiful photos.
Thank you Micael! Can you give promotional code? I want to buy from Laowa - 90mm lens for my Canon R6 markII. This have feature to take and stack pictures in camera body.
Sorry I don't have a promotional code. This lens is fully manual so it will not support in camera stacking.
@@MicaelWidell Thank you! That is true. Looks like your stack gear will be only choice.
hey micael , is TTL avaible with your mk320 on your a7iv ? i heard it doesnt support it. Or are you on fully manual?
Actually I never tried TTL with this combo. I prefer manual for macro
@@MicaelWidell but you confirm that mk320 is working with for Your a7iv? i wanted to make sure before buying , i saw a post mk320 isnt working even in manuel mode in a7iv .
Hey michael
When you order your venuslens lenses and they get shipped from hong kong, did you have to pay duty tax?
Depends on what the seller declares the value to be. Legally you should always pay duty and VAT, but you might not get a bill for it if the seller writes a low value declaration. Laowa usually writes a low value in my experience.
@@MicaelWidell right, okay. I recently got a sony a7II and am looking to get the laowa 90mm. My friend recently bought a mitakon 85mm1-5x and it got shipped from hong kong too, and had to pay a duty almost a third of its value. I suppose I'll just look for it in the german amazon. From finland here, so greetings from a nextdoor neighbour lol
Hello Micale, i am finding it difficult to check if Meike MK-320 is compatible with FUJI XT 30... Since i ahve never used a external flash, i am not sure. Can you please help me with this please ?
As I wrote in the video, people seem to have trouble with this flash on Fuji cameras. I advice against buying it for Fuji users.
@@MicaelWidell Which flash would you suggest ?
Sorry I don’t have a good suggestion. Most flashes work well for macro.
I don’t see the 200-600 in the cabinet. What happened, Micael? 😮
It is in the cabinet, but behind my head :) ON the shots where you only see my hands, you can notice it in the background. Nothing happened, just that the weather and circumstances haven't been right for me to do wildlife in the last few weeks.
@@MicaelWidell thanks for answering. I started to worry that something went wrong. Glad everything is alright. 😊
To bad Dörr doesn't seem to make the diffusor anymore.
Oh no 😞
I have the Angler PSFD-100 Portable Speedlight Flash Diffuser from B&H Photo. Cheers!!!
@@caltari That seems like a great alternative! Thanks!
I bought a similar one on AliExpress. It doesn't fit as many lens diameters, though, since it lacks the flexible inner part. But it works great with the Canon 100mm.
I ordered Pope shield in July 2022, It is the end of December 2022 they charged my card right away and not only did not send me anything, they don't ever respond to emails... A total scam!
How to make money from macro photography?
Put that question in the RUclips search box: I have a whole video about it :)
@Micael Widell thanks that came as top result.
Sadly, DO NOT ORDER A POPESHIELD. It's been more than 4 months with terrible inquiry response from the seller. Totally unacceptable under any circumstances.
WeMacro cheaper and better,@AllanWallsPhotography bought two，Last time you had a video conference, he said WEMACRO was the solution